Having recently moved from a newer “luxury” building with built-in air-conditioning to a much older (and classier) building with radiators and no air-conditioning to speak of, I find myself having to think about getting a window unit to keep from roasting this summer.
The thing is, my new place has a lovely view that I’d rather not obscure with a window unit. But my new place is also quite small, a studio with a very simple floor plan. There’s a tiny, tiny kitchen just off to the side of my living space, with its own window that I’d not mind blocking nearly so much. (It also has the fabulous view, but I don’t spend a lot of time in there.) I’ve linked to a carefully rendered not-exactly-to-scale floor planof my apartment, which will show that I missed my true calling as a draftsman.
The question is: Would an a/c in the kitchen work? The place is small–400 sq. ft. according to a real estate website–so it won’t be a problem getting the sheer cooling oomph to pull it off. It’s just a question of whether the cooling will get out of the kitchen and into the rest of the space. I may already have my answer: opening the window in the kitchen to regulate the temperature of the apartment this winter has often resulted in a cool apartment and a frigid kitchen. But I’d appreciate your thoughts.
Probably going to do exactly what you think. You need to get the air in the large living space circulating, too. One thing that might help is to install a ceiling fan there. Is there a light fixture in the middle of the room that could be replaced with a fan? Not sure how much that will help, but the fan by itself will make it feel cooler even without the a/c.
There is a ceiling fixture, but even though I have no plans to move in the immediate future, I’m still a bit hesitant to make major changes that I’ll have to remove/return to their original state when I move out. On the other hand, I do have three or four antique desk fans hanging around, at least one of which can be wall mounted.
Replacing a light fixture with a ceiling fan isn’t that big of a deal. But you’d want to make sure your landlord was OK with it and that a licensed professional did it.
The best* thing to do would be to have a fan on the floor in the (what appears to be) cased opening between the kitchen and living area, blowing air into the latter.
If preserving the view is important to you, and you have a good spot for it, you might consider getting a portable AC unit instead. These direct the exhaust heat out the window via a hose, so not as much of the window needs to be obstructed as with a window-mount unit. However, it’s effectively another piece of furniture, so it might not be ideal in such a small space.
Does the door to the kitchen have a transom, by any chance? Maybe you could mount a fan up there.
you can’t install a ceiling fan in any ceiling fixture. in new construction they need to be put in a box made to mount a fan into that is structurally secure to framing. mounting a ceiling fan in old construction (especially if real plaster) could damage the ceiling (if you could even get the fan to mount).
A separate fan may do a fine job distributing the air. I do that in my bedroom, the A/C is well off to one side, and does not blow directly to the main BR area. I can keep the AC on low, and use a standing fan to distribute cool air all around the room.
